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Author: pete.stohlman

Come to Jesus

Come to Jesus

You are hereby invited to participate in an informal and unscientific survey.  Please raise your hand if you: Think that the world is getting noticeably better with each passing day.  Believe that those in authority have everything under control.  Feel that the world is growing steadily safer and less violent. Sense that mental health, sound judgment, and common sense are surging. Perceive that humanity is becoming more decent and virtuous all the time. Find that it’s easier and easier to trust…

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At the Very Doors

At the Very Doors

In the final week of His earthly life, Jesus Christ took a few private questions from His inner circle, regarding the future.  Two of the three questions His disciples posed concerned the signs that would herald His return to earth and the end of the world as they knew it (Matthew 24:3).  Jesus ran through the signs and said this about the timing of His second coming: “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth…

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The Surprise Party

The Surprise Party

Jesus of Nazareth told simple stories to communicate profound spiritual truths.  One of the most familiar and endearing examples is the parable of the prodigal son. It is a tale of self-destruction and redemption, told in two parts.  Part one goes like this: And [Jesus] said, A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. And not many days…

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The Unwillingness of God

The Unwillingness of God

If Jesus Christ is coming back to this earth, as His followers claim, what’s keeping Him?  I mean, if He’s really going to do it, what’s He waiting for?  He’s had a couple thousand years to keep His promise, so why hasn’t He returned? The answer lies in the absolute unwillingness of God.  The Apostle Peter introduces the subject this way: “This second epistle [letter], beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance: That ye may…

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Who Can Stand?

Who Can Stand?

It is always interesting to ask people what they believe about divine judgment.  Will it happen?  Whom will it involve?  How will it work?  What will be the results?  Does the prospect concern you? To hear many people talk, the answer to this last question is clearly, “no.”  Why?   Because, “I’m a good person” [according to current societal norms, but they blow with the wind so, stay tuned for updates].   Because, when I selectively compare myself to the worst human beings, I actually look pretty good…

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Look Up and Live

Look Up and Live

Most people like a good story, if it is not too long, and entertains, educates or inspires. For this column, I have chosen one such story from the Bible.  The tale unfolds in only six verses (Numbers 21:4-9), but is full of meaning and drama. I selected it because of its relevance to your life and its importance to your future.  Here it is: And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul…

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When Nature Kills

When Nature Kills

Every avalanche begins with a single snowflake…a bit of crystalized water vapor so light that it takes a small eternity to reach the earth.  It falls in absolute silence and makes no sound whatever when it lands. Conditions must be perfect for this lone snowflake to be formed and to remain in a frozen state.  By itself, it is of no consequence and cannot long exist. It may take many storms, many short, windswept days and long, freezing nights for such flecks of ice,…

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The Whole Truth

The Whole Truth

The Christian faith is unique in the way that it permits its deity to be portrayed.  No tales told of other gods are anything like the picture painted of Christianity’s central figure, Jesus Christ.  To say that this portrait is very strange and oddly unflattering is to engage in understatement of the worst kind. Moreover, Christians—and even Christ, himself—have a most peculiar way of enticing others to embrace the faith as their own.  To illustrate the point, here is a selective synopsis of Christ’s résumé. Although…

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The Birthday Gift

The Birthday Gift

The following is my personal, first-hand account of how Jesus Christ healed me in answer to prayer.  The prayer that He powerfully answered in real time was not the first nor the only prayer offered to Him for my healing over a period of 18 months or so.  This account is based on a contemporaneous entry in my prayer journal dated two days after the event.  It has been lightly edited for readability. IMPORTANT NOTE: I am keenly aware of the sensitivity around…

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Call the Doctor

Call the Doctor

For thousands of years, most human beings in most times and places the world over have taken for granted the existence of a creator, of good and evil, of death and judgment and an afterlife of endless bliss or eternal consequences.  But in the past hundred years or so, a movement has emerged that denies all of this.  It is a radical paradigm shift, historically unprecedented in scope, growth rate and societal impact.  It is notable for its total disregard for the accumulated wisdom…

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